PayPal's all-male panel on gender equality and made lots of people angry

PayPal is hosting a panel on the topic of gender equality next Wednesday. The panel will be all male.

A leaflet which advertised the panel as “Gender Equality and Inclusion in the Workplace” has understandably caused a bit of anger online.

The event, organised by Unity, Women@PayPal, actually had the full title "Gender Equality and Inclusion in the Workplace: a Conversation with our Male Allies" and was intended from the outset to be an all-male panel, something the leaflet didn't fully clarify.

Nolwenn Godard, the President of Unity, Women@PayPal, said in a statement:

For this panel our intent is to bring together our male allies to work with us on inclusion. The title of the panel is 'Gender Equality and Inclusion in the Workplace: a Conversation with our Male Allies'.

Unfortunately the full title and the intention of the panel did not make it on to the initial posters that have been subject of commentary.

Godard has since been asked to chair the all-male panel.

LaFawn Bailey, global head of culture and inclusion at PayPal, said:

Gender equality is not just a women’s issue. It will take all of us to create an inclusive workplace environment where involvement, respect, collaboration and connections are cultivated.

As a leader in culture and inclusion, I recognize that for men to be a catalyst for change, we have to create an environment for honest dialog to occur. Our hope is that this event, which is open to all PayPal employees, will provide a different perspective and spur advocacy around gender balance.

HT Guardian

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